Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Old School Is The New Way

In the old school way of training, coaches touted 'No pain, no gain'. It was a Spartan way of building fitness, where 'some was good, and more was better'. When injuries arose, their charges were, often, ridiculed for being 'soft'.

Today, we observe commercial gym sessions to include circuit-training, cross-training, kettle-bell workouts, weightlifting, boxing, Latin dancing, yoga, and other varieties penetrate the once, 'smelling-good' grooming-and-toning centres. Yet, these are usually over-subscribed, with fads and fiction leading the mindsets and attitudes of the exercise-conscious mainstream crowd. In 'Rocky 6: Balboa', Sylvester Stallone worked his 'hurting bombs' in an old boxing-gym with kettle-bells and an Olympic lifting set. He was not fast, but he was powerful and strong. Age before beauty, as he told Apollo Creed in Rocky 3.

Is old school the way to go in today's time-crunched, fast-paced, dual-income, world? Ever since the film '300' was released, audiences were intrigued by the way the athletic bodies were toned Hollywood-styled. The Hollywood celebrity exercise-gurus were also spewing new concepts and approaches towards enhanced muscle tone and good looks. Narcissism remains the order of the day, motivating the masses to work harder, and even longer in the gym. The triathlon and extreme endurance movement had yielded serious 'weekend-warriors' who seek heightened self-esteem and confidence with the latest 'finisher tee' and 'shoebox-graced medals'. It is cool to sweat, and sweat profusely and purposefully. The doyens of marathons and urban physical challenges wear their finisher tee-shirts like badges of honour, with boy-scout pride and bragging rights.

New-school style is stylised with fashionable gear, attire and holistic approaches. Yoga classes are both cool and 'hot'. Sweat is the chic. Co-ed is the way to participation. 

Is 'old school' better? 

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